Bell ringing mechanism for toys



May 1, 1934. 1,956,954

W. W. KELCH ET AL BELL RINGING MECHANISM FOR TOYS Filed Oct. 1, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l 42 70 i QUEEN! I En -um INVENTORS.

l8 WILBUR w. KELCH.

ERNEST J. OPIE AND ENHEI May 1, w KELCH ET AL BELL RINGING MECHANISM FOR TOYS Filed Oct. 1, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 UHF INVENTORS.

W)LBUR w. KELCH ERNEST J. OPIE. AND 80 BY FRED C. Z\@ENHE|M ATTORNEYS l atented May 1, 1934 BELL RINGING MECHANISM FOR TUYS Wilbur 'W. lielch, Ernest J. Opie, anal Fred C.

Zicsenheim,

Girard, Pa,

assignors to The Girard Model Works lna, Girard, Pa, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application @ct-obcr l,

13 Claims.

This invention relates ticularly to a novel form mechanism for toys.

Many toys, such as locomotives, railway toys in general, fire engines and the like, may be given greatly increased play value if provided with a bell and bell ringing m chanisms. However, because of the complicated mechanism heretofore needed for operating the bell, this improvement has been applied only to toys of the most expensive variety. The object of the present invention is to generally improve and simplify the bell and bell ringing mechanism for toys, with a view to making the same compact, inexpensive, and readily applicable to all kinds of toys regardless of sales price.

Locomotives, fire engines and the like use an oscillatable bell which produces a characteristic sound the most notable feature of which is that the bell is struck in pairs with a long interval of time between the pairs relative to the time interval between the strikes of the pair. Accordingly, a more specific object of the present invention resides in the provision of a bell and bell 3 ringing mechanism which will closely simulate the operation of a real locomotive bell by produc ing the necessary irregular or paired timing of the bell action.

The invention is herein shown as specifically embodied in a toy locomotive. This type of toy is characterized by crowded works, that is, the rotor and complicated gear train interconnect- -g the with the driving wheels leave little pace for additional mechanism. A still further object of present invention is to devise a bell and bell ringing mechanism the operating portion of which consists of only a single movable part which is so simple and small in dimension that it is readily set into and applied to even the conventional crowded driving mechanism of the conventional locomotive toy.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and such other objects as may hereinafter appear, our invention consists in the bell ringing mechanism and toy elements and their relation one to the other as hereinafter are more particularly described in the specification and sought to be defined in the claims. The specification is accompanied by drawings in which:

Fig. l is a perspective view of a relatively inexpensive locomotive toy embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a partially sectioned side elevation of the driving mechanism of the toy, showing the bell and bell ringing mechanism;

to toys, and more parof bell and bell ringing 1931, Serial No. 556,2ll4

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the same;

Fig. l is an enlarged section taken in the plane of the line 4- in Fig. 2, and is explanatory of the operation of the bell ringing mechanism;

F g. 5 is a side elevation of a gear in the gear tr of the locomotive, showing the means for actuating the bell clapper; and

Figs. 6 through 11 are explanatory of a modifiecl way of mounting the bell clapper spring in place, so that it will be readily attachable to and detachable from the motor frame.

Referring to the drawings, the bell is indicated by the numeral and may take the form of a segment of a spherical shell. The bell is struck by a clapper or striker 12 which preferably consists of a simple resilient member or leaf spring supported adjacent the bell 10. A rotatable element 14 is provided with means, here exemplified by the lugs 16 and 18, for actuating the bell striker 12. The manner in which the bell action is obtained is most clearly evident from inspection of Fig. 4, showing how the lug l6 bears against the end of spring 12 and displaces the same during the rotation of rotatable member 14 to the position shown in broken lines and identified as 12. At that point the spring 12 clears t e lug l5 and snaps backwardly, thereby striking the bell 10 with a smart blow.

It will already be evident that the bell ringing mechanism is characterized by extraordinary simplicity and compactness, and this fact makes it readily applicable even to crowded mechanisms such as are found in a locomotive or similar railway toy. The invention is here shown specifically applied to such a toy, as will be evident by reference to Fig. 1. In this figure the toy comprises, generally, a body A and a motor frame B. The body A may be made of cast iron, as is frequently done not only for cheapness but also to add to the weight of the toy so as to prevent slippage on the rails. The casting may be made of two halves fitted together with a longitudinal seam, and may be cut away at the lower portion thereof to receive the motor frame B, all in accordance with conventional practice in the toy art. The locomotive body may incidentally include an integrally cast protuberance 20 in simulation of a real locomotive bell.

The motor frame B is shown without the locomotive body A in Figs. 2 and 3, in order to improve the clarity of the drawings. Referring to these figures, the frame consists of a pair of side plates 22 and 24 spaced apart and held together by three appropriate transverse channel members, two of which are shown at 26 and 28,

and the third of which is hidden by the wheel 30. The sides plates 22 and 24 are supported at the fourth corner by a transverse rod 32 which is also used as a mounting for the bell 10. The latter is held between a washer 34 and a spacer tube 36. It will be evident from inspection of Fig. 4, that riveting of the ends of tube 32 definitely spaces and supports the side plates 22 and 24.

The locomotive here illustrated is of the mechanical or spring-wound type. The driving spring is secured at one end 42 to the transverse channel 26 and at the other end to winding stem 44 itself supported in side plates 22 and 24. A main driving gear 46 is also rotatably supported on winding stem 44. The usual ratchet mechanism permitting winding of stem 44 and spring 40 without rotation of gear 46, but necessitating rotation of gear 45 when spring 40 unwinds, is, of course, provided.

Main driving gear 46 is followed by the usual train of gearing interconnecting the same with the driving wheels of the locomotive. Specifically, the gear 46 meshes with pinion 48 secured to gear 14, which meshes with pinion 50 secured to gear 52, which in turn meshes with pinion 54 secured to the driving axle 56 on which the driving wheels 58 are mounted. Pinion 54 is preferably secured to a gear 60 meshing with a pinion 62 which itself rotates governor and brake mechanism generally indicated at 64, the latter serving to limit the speed of the locomotive when the spring motor has been newly energized. The remaining pair of wheels 30 may be mounted for free rotation on a stationary axle. It will be understood that the spindles, shafts, winding stem, axles, etc., are all supported in and between the side plates 22 and 24 of the motor frame. The locomotive may additionally be provided with a stop and start lever '70, guided in a slot formed by displacing a portion '72 of side plate 22 inwardly, and having a lower end, not shown in the drawings, provided with a tooth for engaging any of the gears, preferably the governor pinion 62, so that unwinding and movement of the locomotive may be stopped at will.

Except for the provision of the bell 10, the motor mechanism so far described is of conventional type, and the very slight change necessary to this conventional mechanism for installing the bell ringing mechanism of the present invention is one of the most important advantages of the same. Considering the bell mechanism in greater detailjit comprises a bell striker 12 which preferably consists of one end only of a longer piece of spring metal, the other end of which is used for securing the bell striker to the side plate 22. For this purpose the latter has a plurality of slits cut therein and the resulting sections of metal 82 and 84 are alternately displaced, as is best shown in Fig. 4, to receive the spring metal 80, the latter being securely clamped therebetween. The resilient striker portion 12 of the bell clapper is thereby supported at one end only so that it may be flexed in cantilever, as is best shown in Fig. 4. The free end 86 is located closely adjacent the side face 88 of gear 14. The latter is provided with a pair of lugs 16 and 18 which are preferably formed simply by striking the same outwardly from the metal of the gear. It will be evident without further explanation, particularly from examination of Figs. 2, 3, 4, and 5, that upon rotation of gear 14 the loading or perpendicular edges of the lugs 16 and 18 bear against the free end 86 of the resilient bell clapper and bend the same away from the bell and thereafter release the same to strike the bell.

It will be understood that any desired rotatable element may be used to actuate the bell clapper, and that a gear anyway needed in the gear train is here used for the sake of simplicity and economy. It will also be understood that a gear other than the gear 14 may be used to ring the bell, the selection being made with a view to causing a slow bell action relative to the speed of the locomotive, so as to simulate the bell action of a real locomotive.

In order to further improve the realism of the toy, the bell clapper is preferably caused to strike the bell at unequally spaced intervals of time, and more specifically, the bell action is preferably caused to take place in pairs separated by an interval of time greater than that between the soundings of the bell in each pair. This desired result is readily accomplished by the simple expedient of properly locating the lugs 16 and 18 on the rotatable member 14, as is best shown in Fig. 5. These lugs are not diametrically opposed or separated by 180 degrees, but instead are separated unequally and preferably by, say 120 degrees, so as to properly time the bell action. It will be appreciated, of course, that several pairs of lugs may, if desired, be provided with appropriate spacing so as to obtain alternate short and long intervals between the striking of the bell.

The form of the invention so far described may be modified by so mounting the bell clapper or spring 12 on the motor frame that it will be readily attachable to and detachable from said frame. Thus, referring to Figs. 6-11 of the drawings, it will be evident that the motor there disclosed corresponds very closely to that already described and similarly includes side plates 22 and 24 separated at three corners by the riveted spacer members 26, 27, and 28, and at the fourth corner by the bell mounting spindle 32. The latter, as before described, carries the bell 10. Between the side plates 22 and 24 of the frame, there are mounted a winding stem 44 and appropriate gear train shafts carrying a gear train exactly like that previously described. The driving wheels and the gear train other than the main driving gear 46, pinion 48 and gear 14 have been omitted to avoid needless repetition and to I improve the clarity of the drawings. It will be understood that the holes indicated at 158 and receive and support the shafts of the driving wheels 58 and 30 respectively.

The bell clapper spring is exactly like that already described, in that it includes a transverse portion 12 and an ext nsion thereof 80 bent at right angles to the portion 12. by means of which the striker portion 12 may be mounted on and supported in the motor frame. However. in the present form of the invention. the side plate 22 is provided with mounting means comprising simply a slot 200 and an outwardly strucl; retaining member 202. One projecting end of winding stem 44 also acts as part of the holding means for the bell clapper spring portion 30, which is appropriately lengthened or extended to reach and slightly pass the said winding stem 44.

To mount the bell clapper spring in place, the portion 12 is simply inserted from outside the motor frame through the slot 200 in the manner indicated in Fig. 5 of the drawings. It will noted that the slot 200 is made somewhat wider than the thickness of spring 12, thereby permitting the extension to be lifted upwardly from the normal position shown in Fig. 6 to the temporary position shown in Fig. 5. It should further be noted that the top edge 204 of the struckout hook or retaining member 202 is cut at such an angle as to provide clearance between the upwardly tilted extension 80 and the member 202. It is therefore possible to push the member 80 all the way up to the side plate 22 and to hold it in direct contact therewith. The extreme end of member 80 is then sprung outwardly away from side plate 22 while holding the remainder of the spring in contact with the side plate, as clearly shown in Fig. 10. With the spring bent in this position, it is readily possible to move the extension 80 downwardly, the flat portion of the extension sliding into and being received by the retaining member 202, and the bent portion of the extension clearing the short end of winding stem 44. The spring may then be released, at which time the bent end snaps back flat against side plate 22 but underneath winding stem 40, as is clearly shown in Figs. 6 and 8.

The retaining member 202 holds the spring extension 80 tightly against side plate 22 with a close or frictional fit; Movement of the spring member upwardly out of retaining member 202 is effectively prevented by the winding stem 44. However, if it is desired to purposely remove the spring from the motor frame, it is merely necessary to catch the end of extension 80 and bend it outwardly, in the manner shown in Fig. 10, after which it is readily oscillated upwardly and removed from the frame.

It will be appreciated that with the form of the invention shown in Figs. 61l, the rotatable parts of the motor and the motor frame may all be assembled in a manner closely resembling that followed if no bell mechanism is to be provided. After the motor has been completely assembled, it is simply necessary to insert the bell clapper spring into place in the manner just described. An important additional advantage of this construction resides in the fact that the length of the clapper portion 12 may be adjust ed to properly and accurately cooperate with the rotatable member i l carrying the lugs 16 and 1S. Inaccuracies in manufacture may lead to variations in the distance of member 14 from side plate 22. The length of the clapper portion 12 of the spring may also vary. These variations taken together may sometimes result in improper clearance between the end of the bell clapper 12 and the face of the rotatable gear 14. and improper or indistinct sounding of the bell may follow. In such case it is simply necessary to remove and replace the spring by another having a difierent length of bell clapper,

and thereby correct the defect.

It is believed that the mode of construction, operation, and application of the invention to toys, as well as the many advantages thereof will be apparent from the foregoing description. The

bell ringing mechanism is exceedingly simple and compact and is applicable to toys of any nature regardless of crowded space requirements, all without appreciably increasing the cost of the toy. The bell action may be timed in close simulation of a real oscillating bell. The changes may be applied to an electrically driven as well as a spring motor toy, and that the toy may be any kind of railway toy and also a vehicle such as a fire engine, patrol wagon or the like. It should further be understood that the vehicle need not be motor propelled, in which case the bell may be operated from the wheels. Furthermore, even a stationary toy may be provided with a driving motor and suitable bell ringing mechamsm.

It will therefore be apparent that while we have shown and described our invention in preferred form, many changes and modifications may be made in the structure disclosed, without departing from the spirit of the invention, defined in the following claims.

We claim:

1. Bell and bell ringing mechanism including a rotatable element, a bell, and a bell striker in the form of a leaf spring extending in the direction of the axis of the rotatable element, one end of said spring being supported in cantilever and the other or free end of said spring abutting the side face of the rotatable element, said element ha ing an operating lug on its side face for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell.

2. The combination with a vehicle toy including driving wheels, a driving motor, and a gear train interconnecting the same, of bell and bell ringing mechanism including a bell and a bell striker in the form of a leaf spring supported adjacent the bell and said gear train, and means responsive to rotation of said gear train for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell.

3. The combination with a train or locomotive toy including driving wheels, 2. driving motor, and a gear train interconnecting the same, of hell and bell ringing mechanism including a bell and a bell striker in the form of a simple transverse leaf spring one end of which is supported in cantilever and the other or free end of which abuts a rotatable element of the aforesaid gear train, said rotatable element having operating lugs struck out therefrom for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell.

4. The combination with a toy including driving wheels, a driving motor, and means including a rotatable element interconnecting the same, of bell and bell ringing mechanism including a bell and a bell striker in the form of a leaf spring sup ported near the bell and near said rotatable element, said element having means for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell, said means being so spaced around the rotatable member that the bell action takes place in groups separated by a relatively longer interval of time.

5. The combination with a train or locomotive toy including driving wheels, a driving motor, and a gear train interconnecting the same, of bell and bell ringing mechanism including a bell and a bell striker in the form of a simple transverse leaf spring one end of which is supported in cantilever and the other or free end of which abuts a rotatable element of the aforesaid gear train, said rotatable element having operating lugs struck out therefrom for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell, said lugs being so spaced around the rotatable member that the bell action takes place in pairs separated by a relatively longer interval of time, in order to more closely simulate the operation of the usual locomotive bell.

6. A toy comprising a body, a motor frame including a pair of side plates, a spring motor mounted between said side plates, wheels located outside of said side plates and mounted on axles passing therethrough, a train of step-up gearing interconnecting the spring motor and one of said axles, a bell mounted between said side plates, and a bell striker in the form of a simple leaf spring extending between said side plates and being supported in cantilever adjacent the bell, the free end of said transverse spring being disposed adjacent the side face of one of the gears in the aforesaid gear train, and said gear having struck out from the side face thereof an operating lug.

7. A toy locomotive comprising a locomotive body, a motor frame including a pair of side plates, a spring motor mounted between said side plates, locomotive wheels located outside of said side plates and mounted on axles passing therethrough, a train of step-up gearing interconnecting the spring motor and one of. said axles, a bell mounted between said side plates, a bell striker in the form of a simple leaf spring extending transversely of said side plates and being supported in cantilever adjacent the bell, one end of said leaf spring being bent to extend parallel to and being received by slots cut in one of said side plates, and the other or free end of said transverse spring abutting the side face of one of the gears in the aforesaid gear train, said gear having struck out from the side face thereof a pair of operating lugs disposed at a spacing substantially less than 180 degrees.

8. The combination with a vehicle toy including driving wheels, a driving motor, and a gear train interconnecting the same, of bell and bell ringing mechanism including a bell, a bell striker in the form of a leaf spring, means detachably supporting the same adjacent the bell and with one end abutting the side face of a member of said gear train, and means on the side face of I said gear train member for bending the striker 7 train of step-up gearing mounted between said side plates, a bell. mounted between said side plates, a bell striker in the form of a simple leaf spring extending transversely of said side plates being supported in cantilever adjacent the bell, the free end of said striker abutting the side face of one of the gears in the aforesaid gear train, said gear having an operating lug struck out from the side face thereof, the other end of said leaf spring being bent to extend parallel to one of said side plates, said side plate having a slot for receiving the transverse portion of the bell striker, and an outwardly struck open-sided retaining member for detachably receiving the bent portion of the bell striker.

10. Bell and bell ringing mechanism including a frame, an element rotatable therein, a bell, a

bell striker in the form of a leaf spring extending in the direction of the axis of the rotatable element, one end of said spring being detachably secured in cantilever to the frame, and the other or free end of said spring abutting the rotatable element, said element having an operating lug for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell, the detachable mounting of the spring making it readily possible to equip the frail e with a spring which properly mates with the rotatable element.

11. The combination with a Vehicle toy including driving wheels, a driving motor, and a gear train interconnecting the same, of bell and bell ringing mechanism including a bell and a bell striker in the form of a leaf spring supported adjacent the bell and said gear train, and plural means responsive to rotation of said gear train for bending the striker away from the bell and thereafter releasing the same to cause it to strike the bell, said means being so relatively disposed that the beil action caused thereby takes place in pairs separated by a relatively longer interval of time.

12. A toy comprising a body, a motor frame includin a pair of side plates, a spring motor mounted between said side plates, wheels located outside of said side plates and mounted on axles passing therethrough, a train of step-up gearing interconnecting the spring motor and one of said axles, a bell mounted between said side plates, and a bell striker in the form of a simple leaf spring extending between said side plates and being supported in cantilever adjacent the bell, the free end of said transverse spring being disposed adjacent the side face of one of the gears in the aforesaid gear train, and said gear having struck out from the side face thereof a plurality of operating lugs so spaced that the bell action produced thereby takes place in pairs separated by a relatively longer interval of time.

13. A toy comprising a motor frame including a pair of side plates, a spring motor including a train of step-up gearing mounted between said side plates, a bell mounted between said side plates, a bell striker in the form of a simple leaf spring extending transversely of said side plates and being supported in cantilever adjacent the bell, the free end of said striker abutting the side face of one of the gears in the aforesaid gear train, said gear having a plurality of operating lugs struck out from the side face thereof and so disposed that the bell action produced thereby takes place in pairs separated by a relatively longer interval of time, the other end of said leaf spring being bent to extend parallel to one of said side plates, said side plate having a slot for receiving the transverse portion of the bell striker, and an outwardly struck open-sided retaining member for detachably receiving the bent portion of the bell striker.

WILBUR W. KELCH. ERNEST J. OPIE. FRED C. ZIESENHEIM. 

